Cardinal Amigo: Unborn child at 13 weeks is a human being

Jaen, Spain, May 26, 2009 / 01:42 am (CNA).- The Archbishop of Seville in Spain, Cardinal Carlos Amigo Vallejo, said last week the “best thing to do is to forget as soon as possible about” the statements made by Minister of Equality Bibiana Aido, who said, “A fetus at 13 weeks is not a human being.”

Questioned by reporters in Jaen, Spain about the controversy unleashed by the remarks, the cardinal said human life is “non-negotiable from conception to natural death,” and everything that affects it should be treated “with the exquisite respect.”

“When the value of a person, in whatever state of existence, is diminished, we ought to fear the worst,” the cardinal said. He also commented about the government’s announcement that it would allow the morning-after pill to be made available without a prescription, calling it “something completely absurd.”

“Abortion under any form is something to be completely rejected,” the cardinal stated. He also addressed one of the most controversial aspects of the proposed reform of the country’s abortion law, namely, that it would allow 16 year-old girls to undergo abortions without the consent of their parents.

“Parents have rights over their children, and above all, great responsibilities. We cannot act in this manner, without listening to parents, without protecting the rights and responsibilities of their children. A 16 year-old girl can get an abortion, and what about the pain that her parents will experience for the rest of their lives?” he asked.